Vegas Golden Knights left wing Pavel Dorofeyev (16) celebrates with right wing Michael Amadio (22) after Amadios goal against the Los Angeles Kings during the second period of an NHL hockey game at T-Mobile Arena Thursday, Dec. 28, 2023.
Published Thursday, Dec. 28, 2023 | 9:38 p.m.
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Logan Thompson sat at his locker and took questions for two minutes, 53 seconds.
He didn’t lift his head once.
The brim of his hat covered his eyes with microphones crowding his stall. His tone wasn’t off-putting. He answered all questions with the same raw honesty that he’s always displayed since being thrown into the fire as the Golden Knights’ starting goalie.
But in the midst of helping the Golden Knights end a four-game losing streak with a 3-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings at T-Mobile Arena on Thursday, Thompson was more thrilled than anything that December is now in the rear-view mirror.
“It’s been a long, hard month,” said a stoic Thompson off a 32-save effort. “It’s a good two points to finish it and a step in the right direction.”
Thompson’s effort was a sorely-needed one not just for himself, but for the Golden Knights from a collective standpoint. Twenty-four hours prior, the Golden Knights gave up four goals in the first period and lost 5-2 to the Anaheim Ducks. Thompson was on the ledger for those four goals on the game’s first nine shots.
But for Thompson, it was another notch in the cap for a month that he would like to forget.
Of the 13 games the Golden Knights played in December, Thompson appeared in 10 of them. The start to the month was great. He went 3-0-1 in his first four starts and gave up seven goals in that stretch, displaying the all-star caliber that showed why he was worthy of that selection last season.
Things started to unravel starting Dec. 12, which was a 5-4 Vegas win in overtime over the Calgary Flames. The goals were coming at an alarming rate, and Thompson was on the hook for most of them. Following the 6-1 win in Dallas on Dec. 9, the Golden Knights gave up 36 goals over their next eight games, allowing 4.5 per game and allowing at least four goals in seven of those contests.
On top of that, Thompson suffered an upper-body injury on the Dec. 19 game in Carolina where he gave up six goals before being pulled.
“I think, mentally, this was the toughest month of my career,” Thompson said.
It didn’t matter if it was Thompson or Jiri Patera in net. The Golden Knights couldn’t stop the dam from breaking. It culminated to Wednesday with Thompson giving up five goals on 25 shots and leading coach Bruce Cassidy to say they needed more from the goaltending position, as well as the players in front of him.
Thompson, and the Golden Knights, got that with allowing just one goal at 5-on-5 the entire game. Though they gave up a 6-on-5 goal with two minutes left, the Golden Knights got back to their style of game: a defense-first mentality that focuses more on the play in their own end, knowing the offense will come eventually.
Vegas blocked 34 shots and Thompson faced hardly anything dangerous for most of the game.
“We haven’t been happy with ourselves,” Thompson said. “I think the guys have been playing well and we’ve been putting forth some good efforts offensively. The plan tonight was to get back to our gameplan, defense-first against a good road team, and I think we did that tonight.”
The plan, Cassidy said, was to always go back to Thompson on the second night of a back-to-back. The key was to see if he could get through the game with a clean bill of health, and he did that.
For as well as Patera played in the losses to Tampa Bay and Florida prior to the Christmas break, Thompson being the NHL-proven goalie gives the Golden Knights the best chance to win. That was ultimately the call for why Cassidy played him again.
“He doesn’t have to win us games, right? Every once in a while, it happens. And then they’ll lose games,” Cassidy said. “We’ve got a pretty good team. We have a veteran group who can score. Special teams are solid. Just give us a chance with timely saves.”
Thompson, in kind, wanted this game. He called the Anaheim game a “write-off” performance and he was more focused on getting back to his next opportunity.
“I expect a lot more out of me,” Thompson said. “I’m happy this month is over.”
Even if he was still dealing with an injury, it’s not something Thompson will admit to. He wants to play every game if he can. Sometimes, as evidence of last season, it can cost him time. But the opportunity is there for him with Adin Hill out for the foreseeable future with a lower-body injury, and his status for the Winter Classic on Monday in Seattle is up in the air.
“One thing Logan has wanted, both of them (Hill and Thompson) for that matter, is more time in the net. This is an opportunity for more time in the net for whomever is ready to take it,” Cassidy said. “That’s how I look at it for young players. Tonight, he took advantage of it and gave us a real solid performance.
“He should feel good about his game. He should go home, feel good about his game and build on it for the next one.”
The Golden Knights (22-10-5) gave Thompson the goal support he needed. Jack Eichel, William Karlsson and Michael Amadio scored, and Vegas held the Kings to one goal for 58 minutes, something that didn’t seem possible a week ago.
It was a performance sorely needed given it was against the best road team in the league. It’s only the second time the Kings have lost in regulation on the road this season (13-2-1).
It was the cap to 2023 that both Thompson and the Golden Knights needed. The last two months have been a far cry from the 11-0-1 start to the season that had the defending champions appear better than ever.
Thompson is likely to start the Winter Classic with all eyes on the world watching him and the Golden Knights take part in their first major outdoor game.
The calendar will turn to January. The sun will rise again. It’ll be a new day for Thompson. And he’ll look to turn the page again.
“I don’t know how long I’m going to be in the NHL in my career, or how long I’ll be a Vegas Golden Knight,” Thompson said. “But come to the rink everyday with a smile on my face, the sun comes up, and just working hard. Just being happy playing the game I loved.”
Danny Webster can be reached at 702-259-8814 or [email protected]. Follow Danny on Twitter at twitter.com/DannyWebster21.
